Caleb Williams Rockets Ahead of Division Rivals in 2025 QB Rankings

What a difference a year can make. At the end of the 2024 season, the Chicago Bears appeared to have once again drafted the wrong quarterback. Caleb Williams, the No. 1 overall pick of the 2024 NFL draft, struggled mightily under the weight of the Chicago Bears' coaching failures, and he nearly set an NFL record for most sacks taken in one season (68). Meanwhile, Jayden Daniels, selected one pick later, earned the 2024 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year award and helped his team reach the NFC Championship game.

Following a playoff run of his own, however, in which Caleb Williams forced overtime with the wildest throw of the year, Williams has officially arrived as a budding superstar, and the final quarterback rankings from the 2025 season prove it. Nick Shook, an analyst for NFL Media since 2014, has completed his annual ranking of all starting quarterbacks from the NFL season, and he slots Caleb Williams in at No. 8.

"Caleb Williams steadily improved throughout his first season under Ben Johnson and produced some incredible heroics in the postseason," Shook writes. "Perhaps I'm a sucker for recency and hyperbole, but by the end of this season, Williams is among the quarterbacks I think of first when I ask the question: Who defined the 2025 season?"

It's hard to overstate how tremendous a development this is for Williams. In the 2024 quarterback rankings, Williams landed at No. 28. In just one year with Ben Johnson, he jumped 20 spots and even leapfrogged his division rivals. Detroit's Jared Goff finished one spot behind Williams at No. 9 (down from No. 4 in his final year with Ben Johnson), while Green Bay's Jordan Love sits at No. 14, four spots behind his 2024 finish.

Haters will hate, but Caleb Williams is still great

Lions and Packers fans are, predictably, unhappy with seeing a Bears quarterback ranked above theirs. For most of them, this is the first time this has happened in their lives, but that's simply the new reality we now occupy. Goff remains a high-level quarterback, but his physical limitations and his age (he'll turn 32 in the 2026 season) place a hard ceiling on his upside.

Caleb Williams is a joke. Dude couldn’t even throw 4k. He should be maybe top 20
— Nathon Cooley (@walleyecandy15) February 12, 2026

As for Love, Shook correctly points out that the Packers' signal-caller is simply too inconsistent and erratic to be considered an elite quarterback right now. He could one day become one, as evidenced by his best games of the year, but he needs to be that version of himself more often, especially in the playoffs, where he's now lost three straight games.

Caleb in Tier 2 and Love in tier 3 like did you even watch the season.
— Todd (@bleacherbum099) February 12, 2026

Vikings fans, meanwhile, are likely too busy wondering whether J.J. McCarthy will still be their quarterback a year from now to worry about how their division rivals stack up.

Caleb flashed but idk how you throw under 60% and get put in tier two and top10
— E (@E_3O5_) February 12, 2026

The Bottom Line

The haters will point to William's completion percentage (58.2%) or his passing yards (3,942) as proof that he isn't actually good. That kind of box score watching is hogwash and can be safely ignored, especially when you know the context around those numbers. The truth of the matter is that Caleb Williams grew by leaps and bounds in just one year with Ben Johnson, especially towards the end of the season, and he's only going to get better.

For the first time since World War II, the Chicago Bears have the best quarterback in their division, and the gap between Williams and the rest will only widen in 2026 and beyond.